Someday
by Misguided Pisces
Summary: Human high school AU. Will finally talks to his longtime crush when he runs into him at a restaurant. Solangelo.
1. Chapter 1

"I'm so sorry. Let me help with that," Will Solace said as he grabbed a handful of rags and tried to help the waiter mop up the water and soda that had spilled all over the table and the floor. His parents had knocked it over while arguing. Frustrated, his dad had paid for their drinks with a pile of cash and stalked out to bring the car around. Will's mom went to the bathroom, mainly to avoid her husband for a few minutes. They hadn't had the chance to eat anything besides bread before their night out ended abruptly. They hadn't even ordered their entrees.

"Thank you, but that's not necessary," the dark haired waiter replied politely, but made no move to stop Will from helping, so Will continued. The moment he saw the young waiter Will Solace felt a pang in his gut. Will had moved from a neighboring town as a freshmen, knowing few people at his new school besides Lou Ellen and Cecil whom he had been childhood friends with. But Will had always made friends quickly and easily, and was well-liked by most of his peers.

Will remembered his first day of his freshman year. Stumbling through the crowded hall from his locker, trying to find his first class, a dark-haired boy had caught his eye. _Wow, he's gorgeous_ , Will thought. He'd known he liked boys since he was a kid, and his parents both knew and were more than okay with it. Even though his parents fought constantly and, as they had told him last night, were getting a divorce, he was grateful for their unconditional love. Will was the one thing they never argued over.

Will had hoped to see the boy in one of his classes, but no luck. He kept his eyes out for the boy everywhere, in the cafeteria, on the school grounds, in the hallways, but was rarely lucky enough to see him by chance. Will couldn't remember where the boy's locker was having been so turned around his first day. But after a few months, he managed to catch a glimpse of the boy at his locker again. Will made it a habit to walk down that hallway every morning just so he could see him. After a while, he asked his friend Lou Ellen about him.

"So, you know that dark haired boy who wears black all the time?" Will asked Lou Ellen at lunch, hoping she knew who he was talking about.

"You mean Nico di Angelo?" She asked.

"I think so," Will replied. Suddenly, Nico appeared, walking down the hallway. That was unusual in the middle of the lunch hour, but maybe he needed something from his locker. Will's and Lou Ellen's eyes both followed him as he walked away.

"That's him," Lou Ellen confirmed with a nod of her head. Then she tilted it to the side, curious. "Why? Do you like him?"

"No!" Will replied with a loud whisper. Although his friends knew his orientation, he wasn't exactly out to the rest of the school, never having been in a relationship before.

"You're lying," Lou Ellen said calmly. Will's ears turned red.

"I just want to know what you know about him."

"You mean if he's gay? I have no idea," Lou was straightforward about most things. Will groaned.

"No, I just don't know anything about him. I was just curious." Will almost regretted bringing it up, but waited anxiously for Lou's answer.

"Well I don't really know much about him. No one does. He doesn't really talk to anyone, except Jason Grace. I know Miranda used to be friends with his older sister, Bianca."

"Used to?"

"Bianca died in a car crash three years ago." That was the one thing everyone at the school knew.

Will was floored. To have a sibling die, so young? Will couldn't imagine. He was an only child.

"That's awful," Will said, sadness thick in his voice.

Lou Ellen shrugged. "Yeah, she was well liked. Everyone was really devastated when it happened. The whole school held a funeral for her. I think he has a younger sister too."

"Will!" His mother called, snapping him out of his reverie. "Are you going to meet us at the car?"

"Yeah, I'll be right there," Will answered as his mother walked out of the restaurant. He looked back at the waiter. He had recognized Nico di Angelo the moment he saw him. How would he not? He'd had a crush on the boy for over a year. Will groaned internally at his bad luck that his parents had embarrassed him in front of the guy he liked. But at the same time, he was glad that Nico wouldn't have to serve him all night. That would be weird.

"Sorry about them," Will said again, looking directly at Nico. Most of the liquid had been soaked up. "I wish I could say that they're not usually like that. But it's been that way for as long as I can remember. They told me last night that they're getting a divorce. Maybe it's for the best. Maybe if they're not living under the same roof they can be friends." Will blabbed. He tended to talk way too much when he was nervous.

"I'm sorry," Nico replied, trying to give Will what he hoped was a comforting smile.

"It's okay," Will said. "Do you know me? We go to school together."

"Yeah, you're in my history class."

Will beamed, surprised but pleased that Nico had noticed. Even though Nico sat near the back, trying not to be seen, Will couldn't help but be aware of his presence. On the first day of sophomore year, he was thrilled to find out they finally had a class together. Now a week in, he hadn't figured out an excuse to talk to him in class yet.

"Will Solace," Will stuck out his hand, figuring he'd better introduce himself in case Nico didn't know his name. Nico took his hand.

"Nico di Angelo."

Suddenly, Will had an idea. Picking up the notepad and pen Nico had set on the table he wrote down his name and phone number and shoved it back into Nico's hands.

"In case you need someone to study with," he said and left before Nico could object. Will hoped his parents hadn't resumed arguing in his absence, but he doubted even that could get rid of the jittery high he got from talking to, and giving his number to (!), Nico di Angelo.

Nico watched as Will walked away, then finished clearing the table. He looked at the money Will's dad had left. They had way over tipped, especially considering they didn't order anything. He smiled to himself. Despite the disaster that table was, a good tip would help him get through the rest of the night. He couldn't wait to get home to Hazel and Reyna. And getting the number of a really cute guy had improved his night too.


	2. Chapter 2

Nico rode home with Reyna. They sat in comfortable silence as Reyna drove, with the radio at a low volume, giving Nico plenty of time to think. Reyna was like a sister to him, especially having lived with her and her parents for the past 4 years. Reyna's family had lived next door to Nico's for as long as he could remember, and when Nico's parents had died in a car crash along with his older sister Bianca, Reyna's parents took him in.

Hazel was Nico's half-sister, a little more than a year younger than him. Nico's parents had split up when he was a baby, and his dad moved out. His dad briefly dated Hazel's mother, but they broke up before he even knew she was pregnant. Nico only met Hazel 3 years ago, nearly a year after losing Bianca. She showed up on the doorstep of Nico's old house, and the new tenants told her to try next door. She explained she had left home because she didn't like her mother's new boyfriend and she was hoping to find her dad. Reyna's parents allowed Hazel to stay for the night, and they contacted Hazel's mother in the morning. She said they could keep her. So she stayed with them.

But none of that interested Nico at the moment. He couldn't stop thinking about the boy who'd given him his phone number tonight. Will Solace.

Nico remembered the first time he'd ever taken notice of Will Solace. He'd spent his freshman year avoiding people, trying not to remember their names or faces. At that point, it was going well. Except for Jason Grace, who he'd known from his math class the previous year. Nico had skipped a year in math. Jason Grace had been new to the school district that year and insisted on being Nico's friend. Jason was nearly as smart in math as Nico was, they were definitely at the top of the class. Jason was kind and didn't talk too much, so Nico figured that as far as friends went this wasn't a bad one to have.

So, of course, when Nico was a freshman Jason insisted they sit together for lunch. The table was filled with other boys from Jason's grade. They acknowledged him but since Nico had no interest in speaking to them, they let him be. Nico ate his lunch in silence every day, except whenever Jason made a comment that required a response.

Nico had good hearing, though. So when his name was mentioned just a few tables away, Nico got up and walked out of the cafeteria. He didn't want to know what they were saying about him. But he glanced back when he heard a loud whisper. The people talking about him in hushed tones were a girl and a boy about his age. Thankfully neither of them were looking at him. The boy had a mop of blonde hair and bright blue eyes. Nico thought he was rather attractive. Then he turned on his heel and walked out of there faster.

Nico had realized he was gay when he was 10 years old. He remembered when a boy in his class, Malcolm, met up with his sister Annabeth and her friend Percy to walk home. All the other boys in his class had discussed how pretty Annabeth was once they had left. But Nico thought Percy was prettier. Of course, it never developed into anything, not even a crush. But it made Nico realize that he would someday have a boyfriend instead of a girlfriend.

That night, he remembered sitting in Bianca's room as she talked about who her friends had crushes on.

"So, Nico, are there any cute girls at school?" she asked. Nico shrugged noncommittally.

"Or cute boys?" she said suggestively.

Nico froze. What was he supposed to say to that? He looked at his hands, playing with his fingers. "Would that be okay?" he asked nervously.

"Of course Nico!" Bianca enveloped her little brother in a hug. "Boys can love boys, and girls can love girls if they want to. Is there a boy?"

Nico shook his head, then surprised himself by adding, "Not yet."

"Someday, little bird, someday." He could almost hear the hopefulness in Bianca's voice.

He had a lot of good memories of Bianca, but that was one of his favorites.

He thought back to Will giving him his number tonight. Since that day he saw him in the cafeteria freshman year, he'd taken notice of Will Solace. He was both pleased and aggravated when he found out they had a class together this year. He sat at the back of all of his classes, while Will sat at the front. Nico considered moving to sit closer to him but stayed where he was. He just had to make sure he actually paid attention in class rather than daydreaming while staring at the back of Will's head. Though he was really good at history and Mr. C was pretty laid back.

Will's hand flew up to answer nearly every question Mr. C asked, Nico noted. Nico knew the answers to every question asked, but never raised his hand. Will chatted with people up until the bell rang every day. Will laughed often and generally seemed happy. Was Will just outgoing and friendly, the type of person who would give his phone number to a classmate he barely knew? Probably. Did Will even like guys? Probably not. When Will gave Nico his number, it was likely an invitation to study together, nothing more. Would Nico take him up on it? Definitely. He now had an excuse to talk to the boy he'd had a crush on for nearly a year, he wasn't going to pass up that opportunity.

But what should he text him? School had only just begun, there wasn't really anything to study for yet. Could he text Will just to say hi? Nico felt nauseous at the thought. Maybe he would wait until he had an actual reason. He pulled out his phone and the slip of paper anyway, saving Will's number in his contacts.

He got out of the car as Reyna turned off the ignition and went inside to change his clothes. Inside he saw Hazel bubbling with excitement over what happened to her at school today. Nico indicated for her to wait for him to get changed to tell him all about it.

* * *

A/N:

This chapter was mostly just Nico's backstory, but don't worry the story will be moving along soon!

Sorry if it's confusing with all the flashbacks, but Nico and Jason met when Nico was in 8th grade and Jason was in 9th. Nico is a year ahead in math so he went to the high school for class. Will and Nico are currently sophomores, and Jason is a junior.

More character introductions to come, the next update should come a bit sooner.


	3. Chapter 3

Will awoke Sunday morning to the sound of a slamming door. He checked his phone and sighed. He knew there was no real reason for Nico to contact him yet, but he couldn't help hoping.

He quickly got dressed and went downstairs to grab breakfast. A note on the counter indicated that his mom went shopping and his dad would be home for supper. Oh well, he could fend for himself for the day. He grabbed an apple from the fridge and went to the living room to turn on the tv.

After flipping through channels to find something to half-watch (really he just liked the tv on for background noise) he unlocked his phone and opened his messages. There was nothing new, but his thumb hovered over the groupchat he had with Lou Ellen and Cecil. He wanted to talk to someone, but what was there to say? That he gave Nico his number and nothing else happened? That could wait til he saw them at school tomorrow.

Nico. Nico di Angelo with his dark eyes and messy hair and sultry smirks. Gods, Will just wanted to know what he hid behind those expressive eyes, and what he could do to get him to really, truly smile. What it would feel like to run his fingers through that wild, pretty hair.

Will groaned as he felt a pang in his chest. It was killing him, waiting to hear from Nico. Maybe he could stop by his locker in the morning and offer to walk him to class? Would that be too much? Well, Nico could always turn him down if he didn't want him there and he would leave him alone, Will reasoned. Besides, now there was a reason to look forward to Monday.

Will got to school early so he could meet Nico at his locker before class. As he stood at his own locker gathering his books, he thought about what he would say to Nico. Other than hi. Will was normally a talkative person, but being around Nico made him nervous. Will prayed to the gods that by the time he got to Nico's locker he will have something to say besides 'I really like you.' He had a feeling that randomly blurting out something like that wouldn't help him make any progress with Nico.

Will was so lost in thought that he almost didn't notice when he passed by Nico's locker. The boy was standing on his tiptoes trying to reach a rather thick textbook from the top shelf of his locker. Will smiled when he noticed.

"Need some help with that?" He asked.

Nico turned to look at him, a faint blush on his cheeks.

"No, I've got it. Thank you, though." He grabbed the book with one hand and pulled it off the shelf, nearly dropping it in the process. His blush got even deeper, and Will noted how it contrasted nicely with his pale skin.

 _Wow_ , Will thought and simultaneously forgot that he should probably say something rather than just staring at Nico.

Will felt his face heat up as a blush tinted his cheeks.

"So," Will said, "do you want to walk to class together?" Well, that was slightly better than 'I really like you,' right?

"Sure," Nico replied shyly, glancing at Will through his long, thick lashes. They had History first period anyway, they might as well walk together.

"So how was the rest of your weekend?" Will started as they walked through the halls. Nico shrugged, which was equally adorable and frustrating.

Will frowned, wondering how he was going to get Nico to talk to him.

"Is that an Apotheon shirt?" When he finally tore his gaze away from Nico's face, Will saw that Nico was wearing a dark t-shirt with the image of a palace in red. Will recognized the game's depiction of Hades's Palace in the Underworld.

"Yup." Nico sounded surprised that Will had recognized it. "The new version comes out this week." He was referring to Apotheon 2: Battle for the Underworld.

"I know! I've been waiting for it forever. I'm probably going to play it all weekend. After I finish my homework, of course."

Nico's lips quirked up into a brief smile. Will's heart nearly stopped. Gosh, that boy made dark and brooding extremely appealing, but his smiles were to die for. A few people in the hall turned to watch as they passed. Nico di Angelo smiling? That was new.

"Maybe we could play it together. There's a multiplayer mode." Will suggested.

"Sure." Nico paused, raising an eyebrow, "if you're any good."

"Hey! I am excellent at it, thank you very much."

"Prove it to me on Saturday, Sunshine." Nico replied as he walked into their classroom.

"That I will." Will shot back as he went to take his usual seat at the front. He was slightly disappointed when Nico didn't sit next to him and instead walked to the back of the room.

He sighed and settled into his chair, preparing to spend the next 50 minutes listening to the teacher. At least History was somewhat interesting.

* * *

A/N:

I literally googled 'mythology based video games' and found Apotheon. Also the sequel is totally made up.


	4. Chapter 4

The bell rang and Will turned to look at Nico. The boy had already packed up his books and was headed for the door. Nico glanced back at Will just as he was about to leave. Will flashed him a smile and Nico looked away quickly and walked out. Will thought he saw a faint blush on his cheeks and smiled wider.

Will made through the rest of his morning classes in a daze. He couldn't seem to get Nico's gorgeous brown eyes out of his mind.

At lunch Will took a seat next to Lou Ellen and Cecil. Will gazed over at Jason's table. He could see Jason but not Nico. There were too many tall boys over there, and Nico liked to sit in the corner where it was difficult to see.

"Who are you staring at?" Lou Ellen asked, and followed Will's eyes to Jason's table. "Ooh, is Nico over there?" She hadn't forgotten Will's crush since the first day he mentioned him last year, nor had she let up on her teasing.

"Is he still on that?" Cecil said frowning. He was a little disappointed that his friend had turned into such a hopeless romantic.

"I talked to him this morning. And Friday night." Will told them.

Lou Ellen squealed so loudly that several people turned their heads.

"Why didn't you tell us this before?" She said, hitting Will. "And what did you guys get up to Friday night?"

Will sighed. Lou Ellen had a tendency to jump three steps ahead. "Nothing, I just ran into him at a restaurant my parents took me to, and we made plans to play Apotheon" He almost didn't include the last part, knowing that Lou would have a field day with that information. When Nico had challenged him to prove his videogame prowess it felt like a tentative step towards friendship, and he didn't want to read into it more than what it was.

"Sounds like you've got a date." Cecil said with a chuckle. He had a bad habit of encouraging Lou Ellen on whatever subject she was teasing Will about.

"When is it?" Lou asked.

"Saturday. And it's not-"

"Oh my gosh I am so excited for you!" Lou Ellen said loudly. "Where are you going? Do you have breath mints? Do you need condoms?"

"Lou!" Will covered his face, turning red from embarrassment. When she quit bombarding him with questions, he waited a moment then lifted his head.

"Sorry," she said. Will's face was still pink.

Cecil was roaring with laughter, both at Lou's questions and Will's reaction.

Once Cecil caught his breath, he told Will, "Chill, dude. We're just teasing you because you two so obviously like each other. And we want to help you. And it's fun." His devious smile worried Will.

"I just—it's not like that. I don't even know if he would want…" Will trailed off. He thought for a moment, then added, "He was the one who invited me to play Apotheon though."

Lou slammed her hands down on the table, "Oh my gods Will, he's totally in love with you."

"You really think he likes me?" Will's voice was soft. He felt like if the answer was no he would break into a million pieces.

"Ugh, Cecil, you talk to him." Lou grumbled. She loved Will, really, but he could be thick sometimes.

"Dude you just told us that you guys have plans. What more do you want?" Cecil asked.

"That doesn't mean anything," Will said, shaking his head. "People play videogames together as friends all the time."

"Yeah, but this is Nico di Angelo we're talking about." Cecil replied. "He generally doesn't talk to people, yet alone agree to hang out with them."

"He talks to Jason Grace." Will remembered, frowning. Did Nico like Jason as more than a friend? Heck, they could even be dating already and Will wouldn't know. Have they been dating this whole time? Will was about to start hyperventilating as he imagined one heartbreaking scenario after another.

"That's different." Lou Ellen said confidently. Will wanted desperately to believe her. "For one, Jason's straight." Will calmed down a bit at that. So he definitely wasn't dating Jason.

"Secondly, I think it helps that Jason never knew Bianca. Jason can just be Nico's friend and not focus on the fact that Bianca's gone."

Will took a deep breath. Remembering the tragedy that Nico's been through helped him put his own feelings in perspective. "But none of this means he likes me. I mean, he didn't sit by me in class. Plus, how do I even find out if he's into guys?"

Cecil frowned. "Aren't you supposed to have gaydar or something?"

Lou Ellen rolled her eyes and pushed Cecil. "Oh, honey. Have you seen the skinny jeans he wears? No straight boy wears jeans that tight."

Of course Lou had spent extensive time observing her friend's crush ever since she had been made aware of it. Nico did a good job of blending in with the shadows, so most people didn't give him a second thought.

Will blushed, picturing Nico in his skinny jeans. Those jeans were pretty damn nice.

Lou Ellen giggled. "See? I'm always right."

Will raised an eyebrow. "That has yet to be proven."

"All in good time." Lou replied with a wink.

Will contemplated that. For once his friends were actually helpful. And he was really nervous around Nico. If it was possible that Nico liked him back, how would Will… act on that?

Gathering his courage, Will spoke while looking at the table. "So how do I let him know that I'm, um, interested?"

"Well subtly is safest, but with your massive crush I doubt you could pull that off. The best thing you could do right now is just be yourself and get to know him, and try not to be too obvious about your crush."

"Gee, thanks."

"And if that goes well, then you need a gesture to indicate that you're interested. Nothing too forward. But not something that could be mistaken as casual."

Will's head was spinning. Were they trying to help him or tell him riddles? "What kind of a gesture?"

Lou thought about that for a minute, then her eyes lit up. "Ooh, I have an idea."

She leaned over and whispered into Will's ear. Will smiled.

"What?" Cecil asked.

"You'll see," Lou Ellen replied with a smirk.


	5. Chapter 5

All week Nico wished he could sit by Will in class, but he was slightly unnerved from all the attention they got just walking to class together. He could feel people's eyes on him as he walked with Will through the halls. It certainly attracted attention, Nico di Angelo walking and talking with someone.

On Thursday Mr. C announced that the first exam of the year would be next week, to a collective groan from the class. Nico wasn't worried though. He already knew most of the material anyway.

The bell rang then, and Will turned in his seat to shoot Nico a smile. Nico was already mostly packed up, but he hung back to talk to Will as the other students left.

"So," Will said as he walked out the door with Nico, "wanna study together? I'm free tonight."

"Okay. We could study at my house."

Will beamed. "Sounds good. I'll meet you by your locker at the end of the day."

Nico felt butterflies fluttering around in his stomach, and he watched as Will waved at him before walking down a different hallway.

Nico made it to lunch barely hearing anything in any of his classes. He couldn't get Will out of his head. He wondered how he would make it through potentially being alone with the boy.

"Hey, does your sister know Piper McLean?" Jason asked.

Nico's head snapped up and he watched as across the cafeteria Hazel took a seat next to Piper. He smiled, knowing what Hazel was up to.

"Yeah, we've known Piper since we were kids. She used to be really close to Bianca," he responded. Nico had told Jason about Bianca two years ago. There was still a note of sorrow in his voice whenever he spoke of her.

"Oh," Jason replied, still staring at them. Nico could almost see the gears in his head turning.

"You know," Nico started, "Reyna's staying after school today for a volleyball game. Hazel will need a ride home. I think Hazel and a couple of her friends were planning to watch the cheer practice after school, but if you don't mind waiting for them I'm sure Hazel would really appreciate it."

Jason lit up. "Of course I don't mind giving her a ride. Do you need one too?"

"Nah, I've already got one," Nico lied. He and Will were both 15, so neither of them drove. But he didn't mind the long walk so long as he got to spend more time with Will.

"Nico di Angelo, did you make a new friend?" Jason seemed much too pleased. Nico just sighed and went back to eating his lunch in silence.

In the afternoon Will went to his Anatomy class. The teacher, Mr. D, announced that their first quiz would be in a week. Will groaned internally. It was on the same day as his history test. Good thing he was getting a start on studying for that tonight with Nico.

Everyone else in the class, even Annabeth Chase, looked worried too. There was a lot of material already and Mr. D was known for being a harsh grader.

During their free work time, Will overheard Clarisse La Rue taunting Annabeth.

"Whatcha so worried about?" Clarisse said. "Gonna skip watching your boyfriend play in the water to study?" she cackled. Annabeth's boyfriend, Percy Jackson, was captain of the swim team.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Some of us take our grades seriously. Have you even started your college entrance essays?" she fired back. Annabeth and Clarisse were seniors, as was most of the anatomy class. Will asked his guidance counselor for permission to take it.

"Already submitted them." Clarisse said proudly. "Chris and I are going to go to college together, whereas you'll probably break up with Jackson because you'll be going to separate schools." Percy wasn't stupid, but Annabeth was ridiculously smart. It was likely that she would end up going somewhere that her boyfriend couldn't get into.

"Doesn't matter where we go, Percy and I will always be together." Annabeth said confidently. Will wished that he had a relationship like that with Nico.

Will frowned as his lab partner, Connor Stoll, spent more time playing with the dissected cat than mapping out the muscles.

"Whatever, Wise Girl. Are you at least going to come watch Chris kick butt in the football game on Friday?" Clarisse's boyfriend was a linebacker on the team.

"Of course," Annabeth said. She and Clarisse had a really weird friendship. Will thought he would describe them as frenemies. They were always competing with each other, yet weirdly supportive. He supposed that Annabeth would get bored without Clarisse around, and that Clarisse just liked to push people's buttons.

Just then, the bell rang and the last hour of the school day was over. Will started packing up, anxious to meet Nico at his locker.

"Hey, um, Will?"

Will looked up to see Annabeth standing next to his desk.

"Hey Annabeth." Will greeted her. He'd never really talked to her before, so he looked at her curiously, wondering what she wanted.

"I was just wondering if you wanted to share notes online. I really don't have a lot of time to study for this quiz but I still want to do well."

"Oh, no problem. I was going to make some flashcards on Quizlet later tonight. I can send you the link when I get it done, if you want."

"That would be great! Thank you! Here's my number," Annabeth quickly scrawled her number on a scrap of notebook paper and handed it to him. "I totally owe you one, thanks Will."

"No problem." He said with a smile.

She rushed out of the classroom and Will looked at the clock. He was totally running late to meet Nico. He quickly grabbed his books and ran out of the classroom.


	6. Chapter 6

Nico had packed up his things slowly, waiting for Will. As the hall emptied out, Nico closed his locker and pulled out his phone. He pulled out his phone, typed out _Where are you?_ , contemplated for a moment, then hit send.

A buzzing noise came from around the corner. Nico looked up to find Will smiling at the screen of his phone. Will's blue eyes sparkled and his hair was perfectly messy, as usual. Nico's heart rate picked up.

Just then Will met his eyes and his smile got even wider. Nico felt his face flush and looked down so Will wouldn't see, his long bangs falling in his eyes.

"Sorry I'm late. A friend needed my help."

Nico shrugged. "No worries."

"Shall we then?" Will indicated towards the main door. Nico nodded and followed him out.

The leaves were just beginning to turn color and the air was cool but not cold yet. Nico and Will walked side by side, arms just barely brushing their coat sleeves together. They walked in silence for a while. Nico was trying to think of something to say to Will, when suddenly-

"Is that squirrel talking on the phone?"

Nico looked around wildly trying to find what Will was referring to, when he saw the squirrel near the base of a tree. Then he burst out laughing.

Will looked at him with a mixture of amusement and concern. It felt strange for Nico to laugh, he so rarely did it, yet he couldn't stop.

"Th-the squir-rel is h-holding a le-af," Nico managed to get out while still laughing. He had to admit, it was pretty funny that the squirrel was holding the leaf to his ear like a cell phone. But it was funnier that Will assumed it was a cell phone.

Will blushed a bit. "Oh, I guess that makes more sense. But from far away it looked like… well I guess I've always had an overactive imagination."

Nico thought Will was extra cute when he was embarrassed. He had managed to stop laughing, but now he was hiccupping. Will smiled widely at this.

"Aww, does someone have the hiccups?"

Nico growled in response, but it was cut off with a hiccup which made it far less intimidating.

"Guess I'll have to scare it out of you." Will had an evil glint in his eye.

"Plea(hiccup)se Sol(hiccup)ace, nothing you (hiccup) could d(hiccup)o would be (hiccup) scary."

The blonde remained suspiciously silent, and Nico just rolled his eyes and trudged on ahead of him towards home, still hiccupping loudly. He could hear Will walking behind him though, so he didn't slow down or look back.

Suddenly, Nico felt something poke the back of his neck and warm breath on his ear whispered, "Boo."

Nico jumped, to Will's satisfaction. They both stood there for a moment, waiting to see if-

Hiccup.

"That didn't (hiccup) work."

"Worth a shot." Will sounded much too satisfied that he'd had the opportunity to scare Nico. The dark haired boy was already planning his revenge. "You'll just have to drink a glass of water upside-down when we get to your house."

"Does that act(hiccup)ually work?"

"Works every time for me."

By then they were at Nico's house. He led Will inside and made right for the kitchen. Will demonstrated how to lean over the glass to drink from it upside-down, and Nico managed it without spilling. It did the trick.

The two boys headed up to Nico's room to study. The house was all theirs, with Nico's parents at work and his sisters still at school, but Nico preferred to study in his room anyway.

His room was dark, with the shades pulled shut and deep blue walls making it feel like a cave. Upon entering he flicked on the light and kicked some of the clothes piled on his floor out of the way. His bed, however, was made neatly. Nico sat on the bed and Will sat next to him.

"Who's that?" Will pointed towards a picture on the dresser of a much younger Nico and an older girl who clearly wasn't Reyna.

"That's Bianca,"

Will froze. How could he be so stupid? Of course that was Bianca.

"I'm sorry."

"It's okay. I'm okay." Nico said softly.

"What was she like?" Will asked.

Nico's features seemed to soften, and he spoke with reverence in his voice. "She was all kindness and smiles. As a kid I followed her everywhere. She got a little annoyed with that sometimes, but she was always the one I relied on."

Nico seemed content to leave it at that, so Will wasn't going to pry further.

"And your other sisters- Hazel and Reyna?"

This time Nico's smile reached his eyes. "Reyna's great. She drives us wherever we want to go, except when she has volleyball practice. And Hazel's a sweetheart, but she has a flair for the dramatic."

Will laughed. He was glad Nico was in a good mood again.

"What about your family?" Nico returned. "Are they… doing okay?"

Will gave him a reassuring smile, glad that he'd asked. "It's been tense, but no worse than usual I guess."

Nico smiled back. "Well if you ever need anywhere to go…"

The blonde nodded, then suddenly broke into a wide smile. "Hey Nico, you know where else it was tense?"

Nico looked at him curiously.

"The past, present, and future walked into a bar."

"Don't make me hit you with my textbook." Nico threatened. Will was too busy rolling on the bed laughing to care.

When Will stopped laughing, they pulled out their textbooks and attempted to begin studying. Nico stole glances at Will while he was engrossed in the chapter, liking the way Will pushed his tongue through his teeth. Will, for his part, was concentrating so intently on his book to try to keep himself from reaching towards Nico. Still, his hand unconsciously shifted towards where Nico's was resting.

It was going to be a long study session.

* * *

A/N: So, my flash drive died :( I didn't even know that could happen. At least the few things I'd already written are well ingrained on my brain. Anyway, sorry for taking so long this time, next update should be a bit sooner.


	7. Chapter 7

Monday morning, Will nearly ran to Nico's locker. He was anxious to see him again. They had spent all day Saturday playing videogames. Which was great, up until Will had to leave. Then he spent all day Sunday replaying that last moment in his head, remembering the stunned look on Nico's face.

Will paced nervously. Nico wasn't there yet. In addition to freaking out about what had happened on Saturday, he couldn't stop thinking about what Lou had said last week. It was so simple. Just ask him to Homecoming. He should probably give it more time and Homecoming was still a couple of weeks away, but Will wanted to ask him before someone else did. Even though Nico had an uncanny ability to be a fly on the wall, he was also unbelievably gorgeous and Will was certain that sooner or later other guys would notice and be lined up around the block for the chance to take Nico out.

He glanced at the main entrance. Most of the students were closing up their lockers already. Where was Nico? He thought about shooting him a text, but then the bell rang, and for the first time in a week he walked to class alone.

Will tried looking for Nico again at lunch. He even walked by Jason's table to get a better look. His hopes plummeted when he saw that Nico wasn't there. Although why would he be if he wasn't in class this morning? Reluctantly, he walked back to his own table.

"Hey man. How was your date?" Cecil asked.

Will had forgotten. After his date with Nico on Saturday, Cecil and Lou Ellen had both texted him asking how it went. All he replied with was, _It was great! I'll tell you all about it on Monday :D_.

Now Will only sighed. He pulled out his phone and quickly texted Nico, _Hey! Didn't see you in class today. Everything alright?_

"Earth to Will." Lou waved her hand in front of his face.

"Oh, sorry guys." Will ran his hand through his hair, pushing his curls back. "It was really fun. We basically played videogames all day."

"Will, did something happen?" Normally when Lou said something like this, it would sound suggestive. But this time she only sounded worried.

"It's just—he's not here today. And I don't know why. Does he hate me now? Is he ditching school to avoid me?"

"Whoa, chill dude. So he's not in school one day. He could be sick or something," Cecil pointed out.

"And there's no way he would hate you Will." Lou added.

Now Will looked guilty. He rubbed the back of his neck and his face turned red.

"Um, I might've tried to kiss him."

"Oh, Will." Lou shook her head.

"What do you mean, tried?" Cecil questioned.

Will pulled nervously at the beads on his leather necklace while he spoke. "He was walking me out and I turned around to say bye and our faces were really close and without thinking I leaned in and our lips just barely brushed and he froze so I just said 'Um, bye,' and left."

"Oh, honey," Lou said sadly. "You really are hopeless, aren't you? I told you not to move to fast with him."

"Ugh I know. I just forget to think when I'm around him."

"That's called being in love, darling."

"Well it could be worse." Both Will and Lou raised their eyebrows. Cecil usually wasn't the optimistic one.

"C'mon, we all know he likes you back. He was probably just caught off guard. I bet you he'll be back in school tomorrow and you can ask him yourself."

Will looked unconvinced, but felt a glimmer of hope.

Two days passed, and all Will felt was dread that kept growing whenever he looked for Nico and he wasn't there. There was still no response from the text he sent Nico on Monday. He was so angry at himself for screwing this up that he wanted to cry.

"Hey Will."

He glanced up from the blank notebook he'd been staring at to find that the last bell of the day had already rung. Class was over.

Annabeth stood in front of his desk with a concerned look on her face.

"Hi Annabeth."

"Are you okay?" She slid into the empty desk in front of his.

"I'm trying to be." He answered truthfully.

She frowned at that. "What's wrong then?"

"There's this guy I like, but I think I messed it up. I haven't seen or heard from him in a few days and I'm worried that he might be avoiding me."

"I'm sorry. Why don't you tell me about him?"

He took her up on the offer. He talked about how wonderful he thought Nico was. How adorable and funny and sarcastic and sweet he was. And afterwards, strangely enough, he felt a little better.

* * *

A/N: So, this wasn't really any faster than last time. Sorry about that. It's been an unexpectedly busy week. Anyway, I hope you all are still enjoying this, cause I'm having fun writing it.


	8. Chapter 8

Hazel knocked on her brother's door before slowly pushing it open. "Nico, I've got your homework. And some soup."

She set the books down on the floor and brought the soup over to the drowsy boy tucked into bed under several blankets.

"Thanks." Nico said softly. Hazel noted that his hands were cold and clammy as he reached out to take the bowl. She frowned and touched the back of her hand to his unusually warm forehead.

"Are you feeling any better?" She sat down on the end of his bed.

"A little." He blew on the soup, then ate a spoonful.

"Wanna hear about how Leo tried to ask Callie out?"

Nico didn't really care, but he knew Hazel loved talking about her friends so he said, "Sure."

As Hazel talked, Nico tried to quell the fear in the pit of his stomach. He really didn't want to go back to school tomorrow, but he'd missed enough days and his fever was almost completely gone. Besides, he had a test to take.

There wasn't really any reason to not want to go to school, Nico reasoned. After all, his conversation with Jason on Friday had gone well. But it was Jason, and Nico trusted him. Yet he still wasn't sure if he would walk into school tomorrow and suddenly everyone would know. And they would all be looking at him. He'd kept this secret for so long, does telling just one person change anything?

Of course Jason wouldn't tell anyone. But now that Nico had admitted it, wouldn't people be able to sense it? Or maybe he should be hoping for that. He wasn't quite ready to tell the world, but would everyone just knowing be better than making him summon the courage to tell people over and over again?

Nico remembered Jason questioning him at lunch on Friday about his study date with Will.

"So, who did you ride home with yesterday?" Jason had asked, genuinely curious.

"I walked home yesterday," It was true, he just left out that he hadn't walked home alone. Nico tried to kill the butterflies that fluttered around in his stomach whenever he thought of Will, but kept failing miserably. He looked at the table, trying not to blush.

"Ooh, does someone have a crush?"

Nico blushed deeper.

"Who is she?"

"Tsntashe" he whispered. The feeling of butterflies subsided as his heart started racing.

"Huh?" Jason hadn't caught any of that.

Nico took a deep breath and said, "It's not a she."

"Oh." Jason looked stunned for a moment, then he recovered. "Who is he then?"

The shorter boy stared at the table, trying to find the words to admit out loud to liking Will Solace while simultaneously fighting his instincts that were telling him to run away. Jason sensed Nico's nervousness.

"It's okay, you don't have to tell me." The blonde shot his friend a reassuring smile.

Nico was grateful that Jason was so understanding, he simply couldn't bare revealing more of himself at the moment.

"But if you ever want to talk to someone," Jason offered.

It really wasn't so bad, Nico reminded himself. Much better than he ever expected it to go. But that reminded him of his other problem, Will.

Nico frowned as Hazel continued describing Leo's antics to try to impress Callie.

He was sure he hadn't dreamed it, Will's lips gently brushing his for a fraction of a second before he left. Nico didn't know if it could be counted as a real kiss. Maybe an almost-kiss.

But it had definitely happened. And when it did, Nico froze. He stood there for a good minute after Will had left completely. Luckily, his sisters and their parents were out Saturday afternoon, so there was no one to question why he was standing there staring blankly.

The sky was cloudy and grey and the air was slightly chilly, but not enough to need a jacket. When a bird cawed he was shaken out of his stupor. Without a second thought, he grabbed his shoes and house keys and went for a walk to clear his head.

An hour later, he had no answers. What did this mean? Did Will like him? Did this mean he would have to tell more people that he's gay?

He was so lost in thought that he didn't even notice it had started raining ten minutes ago. By the time he got back to the house he was soaked through.

Once he made it back his sisters and parents were home, and they all immediately scolded him for being out in the rain and for not leaving a note. It wasn't until the next morning that he woke up with a fever. Nico spent the next few days in bed, alternating between watching tv and sleeping because the cold medicine made him drowsy. In the few hours he was awake at night he attempted to do his homework, which was piling up as the number of days of school missed increased.

He had finished the soup that Hazel brought him and she offered to take the bowl back downstairs. As she was about to leave, he called out, "Hazel?"

"Yeah?"

"Have you seen my phone?" He looked at the bedside table where he normally kept it. It wasn't there and the charger hung limply off the edge.

"Do you want me to call it?" She pulled her own phone out of her pocket.

He nodded, and a moment later there was the distinct buzzing of a phone vibrating, but he couldn't quite tell from where. Hazel took a couple steps back into the room as she listened.

"I think it's coming from under your bed."

She set the soup bowl down as she laid on the floor and reached under the bed.

With a smile, she pulled Nico's phone out and handed it to him.

"Thanks." He said.

"No problem." She scooped up the bowl and headed back downstairs.

Unsurprisingly, Nico's phone showed a missed call and was very, very low on battery. Surprisingly, he also had a text from Will.

Nico reached over to the cord to plug it in before opening the text.

 _Hey! Didn't see you in class today. Everything alright?_

Crap. It was sent on Monday. Two full days ago. How was he supposed to reply now? Did Will still care? Nico bit his lip, contemplating whether he should include an explanation for why it took him so long to respond.

 _Sorry, I've been sick and I dropped my phone under my bed. I'll be there tomorrow._

After thinking for a full five minutes, he hit send. Then he reached for his textbooks and resigned himself to studying. He might as well if he was going to school tomorrow.

Not a minute later, his phone buzzed.

 _Sorry to hear that! Hope you're feeling better :) See you tomorrow!_

Nico couldn't help but smile at that. Despite his fears, he was suddenly looking forward to school tomorrow. Maybe it wouldn't be so bad after all.

 _Yeah, see you tomorrow_

He turned his attention back to his textbook, but didn't stop smiling.


	9. Chapter 9

Will felt as if he'd had about 12 cups of coffee this morning- when really he'd had none. He didn't even eat breakfast because his stomach was flip-flopping all over the place.

 _There's no reason to be nervous_ , he reminded himself. _It's just the first time you'll see him since you tried to kiss him and you're dying to ask him to homecoming before somebody else does._

 _Also, you can feel your chest wanting to collapse in on itself at just the thought of him turning you down. What could possibly go wrong?_

Will took a deep breath and tried to still his shaking hands before Nico arrived.

A moment later, he caught sight of that silky black hair and dark eyes. Nico looked a little paler but overall healthy. Will's heart gave a thump.

"Hey," Will said brightly once Nico walked up to his locker.

"Hey," Nico replied without looking at Will, the corners of his mouth quirking up into a smile.

Will just leaned against the lockers in a comfortable silence as he watched Nico grab his books. When Nico shut his locker they wordlessly continued their routine of walking to class together.

When they were partway down the hall Will thoughtlessly blurted out, "So, about Saturday…"

Nico froze. Part of him was dreading this conversation, but the other part wanted it over with as soon as possible. So he decided to cut to the chase. "Did you mean to kiss me?"

It was Will's turn to freeze up. He hadn't expected Nico to be so blunt, demanding an answer from him. But they had already been standing in the middle of the hallway for almost a minute obstructing traffic.

Will swallowed, trying to force the nerves down. But he knew he owed Nico an honest answer.

"Yes." He breathed, watching Nico's face intently. To Will's disappointment, Nico didn't blush or meet his eyes. But he nodded and said, "Okay."

 _Okay? What the hell is that supposed to mean?_ Will was far too busy panicking to continue the conversation, and they had reached the classroom now anyway.

Will slid into his usual seat in the front, and he almost didn't notice when Nico took the seat next to him instead of walking to the back of the room.

Will's spirits were immediately lifted. Nico was sitting next to him. It was nothing short of a miracle. Unfortunately, he had to push all thoughts of Nico out of his mind as they started the first test of the year.

By the time class was over Will felt he did fairly well, but that feeling paled in comparison to how happy he was that Nico didn't hate him. The bell rang, and Nico got up to leave after he handed in his test.

"Wait!" Will said softly but urgently. Nico looked at him this time and raised an eyebrow as the rest of the students were filing out.

Will quickly glanced around. Once all their classmates had left, and Mr. C had his nose buried in the exams across the room, Will started.

"So, some of my friends and I were going to go to Homecoming, and it would be more fun with you there."

Nico's eyebrows furrowed. Was he asking…

"I mean," Will continued, "I would really like it if you came with me."

This time Nico blushed. "I would really like that too." He said before hurrying out the door.

Will felt his chest grow warm, and he knew he'd be grinning like a lovesick idiot for the rest of the day.

At lunch, Nico couldn't help but smile occasionally when he thought of Will. Of course, agreeing to go to Homecoming with Will didn't make his problems with coming out any easier. But he decided to push that aside for the moment and let himself be happy.

"It's Will Solace, isn't it?"

Nico tensed up as Jason sat down across from him. Was it that obvious? Did someone write 'I love Will Solace' on his forehead when he was too distracted with thoughts of Will to notice?

Jason immediately noticed Nico's reaction.

"I saw him at your locker this morning." Jason informed, and Nico looked much less freaked out.

"Yeah," Nico finally acknowledged, and Jason looked pleased and a bit surprised that he had responded.

"That's great!" Jason smiled widely. "I've heard good things about him. If he's going to date my little Nico, he'd better prove them all right."

Nico rolled his eyes and mumbled, "I'm not your little brother, and I'm only a year younger than you."

"Um, excuse me?" Someone said from behind Jason. Jason turned around and his jaw dropped.

Standing there was Piper McLean, with her book bag in one hand and lunch tray in the other.

"Hi, it's Jason, right?" Piper asked.

Jason nodded, unable to speak.

"Hi, I'm Piper, and I was wondering if you could tutor me in math." She looked at him sweetly with wide, sincere eyes.

Nico raised an eyebrow and Piper shot him a glare that Jason didn't notice. He had known Piper since they were kids, and she had always excelled in everything. He seriously doubted that she actually wanted help with math. But then it all clicked into place, and Nico smiled.

"O-of course," Jason replied. "When do you want to start?"

"How about Fridays before school?"

"Works for me."

"Great, thanks." She said as she walked to her table. Jason's eyes followed her as she maneuvered through the cafeteria.

Nico had to hold back laughter at the goofy grin on his friend's face.

"A little lovestruck, are we?" Nico teased.

"No more than you are with Will," Jason fired back.

Nico blushed. "Shut up." But his tone was more playful than harsh, so Jason just smirked in response.

* * *

A/N: Sorry for the unexpectedly long wait! I promise this is still going. Read on and enjoy!


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